Mounting discontent among framework contractors leads to speculation that others might abandon NHS Estates

Contractor Pearce has left the multibillion-pound Procure21 healthcare building programme after failing to win a single contract since the scheme rolled out nationally more than a year ago.

A statement from Procure21 confirmed that Medicor (Pearce Health) is no longer on the Procure21 framework.

The statement said: 鈥淎lthough Medicor is obligated to complete NEC Contracts it has already secured, it is no longer able to enter into new Procure21 contracts with NHS organisations.鈥�

The statement said Peter Woolliscroft, NHS Estates head of construction, would be meeting Pearce鈥檚 chief executive next week to discuss the future of contracts it secured under the Procure21 pilot programme.

Woolliscroft said he would consider whether or not to replace Pearce. He added: 鈥淚t鈥檚 only our first year of the Procure21 programme and we have done remarkably well.鈥�

Andrew Dale Harris, Pearce鈥檚 business development director, said that the firm had decided to pull out of the framework after a review of its operations.

It鈥檚 only our first year and we have done remarkably well

Peter Woolliscroft, NHS Estates

Dale Harris said: 鈥淭he annual subscription for the Procure21 framework was due very shortly so we decided that now was an apt time to leave.鈥� He said Pearce would concentrate on leisure, retail, education and general contracting in the South-west.

黑洞社区 revealed this month that Pearce had been reviewing whether to stay on the framework. It is understood that it had struggled with the affordability of six schemes it won under the pilot programme.

Procure21 is the process used on any publicly funded healthcare scheme worth more than 拢1m. It is estimated to be worth between 拢1.2bn and 拢1.4bn a year.

There has been growing discontent from some of the 12 firms on the framework list because of a lack of work. A source at one contractor said it was significant that Pearce had left the framework. He said that other contractors might leave too.

The source added that contractors had to pay 拢40,000 a quarter to stay on the framework so it was important to win contracts.